ASHA's Award Programs for Students and New Faculty

From ASHA:

To foster leadership and promote careers in academia and research, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) has created several award programs(http://www.asha.org/students/). These programs are available to undergraduate, master's, AuD, and PhD students enrolled in communication sciences and disorders (CSD) programs; postdoctoral fellows; and new faculty.

The Minority Student Leadership Program is open to racial/ethnic minority students at the levels listed above, who wish to enhance their leadership skills, interact with leaders in the professions, and learn how their association works. Now in its 8th year, this program has given over 200 students' insight into their leadership abilities and a better understanding of how leaders affect change in their professional association and has empowered these students to take risks and meet their own challenges.

The Students Preparing for Academic & Research Careers — SPARC Award, the Advancing Academic-Research Careers — AARC Award, the Student Research Travel Award, and the Minority Student Travel Award were all instituted to increase and retain CSD scientists and faculty. The SPARC and AARC Awards were developed as part of ASHA's Focused Initiative on the PhD Shortage in Higher Education. SPARC's primary focuses are to promote PhD career development for CSD undergraduate and graduate students and to increase the number of PhD teacher–scholars and students who choose higher education as a career option. The AARC Award addresses the shortage of PhD-level faculty by encouraging those at the beginning of their academic research careers to remain in higher education.

ASHA developed the Student Research Travel Award to encourage budding scientists to pursue careers in science and research. This award is available to undergraduate, master's and doctoral students who are the first authors on a technical paper. The Minority Student Travel Award is open to underrepresented racial/ethnic minority students interested in pursuing research. These new scientists will attend the 16th Annual Research Symposium, "Issues of Development and Plasticity of the Auditory System," at the 2006 ASHA Convention in Miami, FL.

Visit 2006 ASHA Award Programs(http://www.asha.org/students/) for application, deadline, and submission information.